The Houston Rockets were relatively quiet at the NBA trade deadline in February, with the jettisoning of Eric Gordon to the Los Angeles Clippers marking the lone notable move by general manager Rafael Stone. Yet less than a month later, Stone's deal appears to already be paying dividends.
Houston held firm to its price for Gordon in recent years. Each trade deadline and offseason since the James Harden trade in January 2021 featured a slew of trade rumors surrounding Gordon, but the Rockets opted against dealing him for anything less than a future first-round pick.